Good Life Facilitation
Culturing containers for community. For people who want to gather others in the spirit of joy.
An early teacher of mine described the Tao Te Ching as a magic mirror. Group leader John Heider sees it as a powerful guide for wise leaders, or as a way to practice more effective psychotherapy.
Besides the technical skills, what are the human skills most important for culturing community?
What do we need? Like an Epicurean garden, we need three things:
- a wall
- good snacks
- good people
- and here, good philosophy
“All of this inner work is necessary and fulfilling… but it doesn’t mean anything unless we take it back out into the world. We have to dance it out into the world in some way.”Quinn, World Philosophy fellow, Fall 2026
For anyone with a community they’re building, want to build, or want to contribute to.
SLOW facilitation
Our five weeks move through the Seven Ps of a good life, each echoing a world philosophy or two. For coaches and facilitators, we consider our relationships with self, life, others, and world.
- Presence + PurposeNov 11
- PlayNov 18
- ProjectsDec 2
- PeopleDec 9
- ProcessDec 16
- PerspectiveDec 16–18: our closing celebration
The reading shelf
- Nov 11Carl Rogers, A Way of Being
- Nov 18John Heider, The Tao of Leadership
- Dec 2Marilyn M. Taylor, Emergent Learning for Wisdom
- Dec 9Reinhard Stelter, A Guide to Third Generation Coaching
- Dec 16Irvin Yalom & Molyn Leszcz, The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy
Links go to WorldCat, so you can find each book at a library near you. Weekly questions and invitations are in the full syllabus.
A doorway into the perMA
Good Life Facilitation stands on its own, and it is also a doorway into the perMA, our twelve-month, person-centered Master of Arts.
The practical bits
- Groups
- Wednesdays, Nov 11 – Dec 16, 9:30–10:45am MST on Zoom
Wednesdays, Nov 11 – Dec 16, 6:00–7:15pm MST on Zoom
Tuesdays, Nov 10 – Dec 15, 4:45–6:00pm MST in Fort Collins - Thanksgiving
- No meetings Nov 24/25
- Finals
- Celebrations, presentations and exit interviews, Wednesday – Friday, Dec 16–18 (times to be announced)
- Time
- A 75-minute gathering, plus two to three hours a week on your own
- Group size
- Eight seats per group, by application and friendly invitation
- Tuition
- $695. Paid Substack subscribers: $495. Continuing perMA fellows: $200/month. Payment plans and needs-based scholarships available.
From the last circle
“I’m grateful for the gentle leadership and the guidance that brings focus and brings the rhythm of writing and journaling back into my life.”
“I feel I can be weird and authentic and show up wherever I am on any given day.”
“Every step, every breath… we’re already dancing. It’s already a song.”
Names changed.
Apply
A few short questions about you and the community you’re building, or want to build, or want to contribute to. Sean reads every application and replies personally.
When you enroll, you agree to our code of conduct and our terms of participation.
I will live my truth openly and honestly
In the light of my growing consciousness
Responsible for the consequences of my choices
And acting in behalf of all creation.
— John Heider
Sean Waters has taught writing at Colorado State University for 17 years and holds master’s degrees in Philosophy and English Education. He founded the Wisdom Workshop in 2021 and has led more than 1,500 hours of small-group facilitation with 115+ participants in 9 countries. He has also played over 1,000 shows across the Colorado Front Range.
Kindness is intelligence